Machine for inserting nuts or disks in tubes.



C. VALLONE & P. R. ROGERS. MAOEINB PoR INSERTING NUTS 0R :DIsKs INTUBES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY17, 1909.

Patented Sept. 20,1910.

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APPLICATION FILED MAY 17, 1909.

MAGHINE FOR. INSERTING NUTS 0B. DISKS IN TUBES.

Patented Sept. 20, 1910.

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C. VALLONE & F. B.. ROGERS. MAof'nN Fon iNSBRTING NUTS on msxs 1N TUBES.

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CHARLES VALLONE AND FRANK R. ROGERS, 0F BUFFALO, NEW YORK, ASSIGNORS T0BARCALO MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

MACHINE FOR INSERTING NUTS 0R DISKS IN TUBES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 20, 1910.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, CHARLES VALLoNE and FRANK R. Roenes, citizens ofthe United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and Stateof New York, have invented a new and useful Improvementin Machines forInserting Nuts or Disks in Tubes, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to machines for securing nuts or perforated disksin the ends of tubes, the nuts being primarily intended for theengagement of screws for fastening knobs, devices, or cross tubes on theends of the tubes containing the nuts.

The objects of the invention are to produce an efficient and desirablemachine for this purpose, which is of simple construction and can bemanufactured at a reasonable cost, and which can be easily operated torapidly secure the nuts or disks in the tubes; and also to construct themachine so that it can be readily adjusted to operate upon tubes ofdifferent diameters.

Briefly stated, the operation of securing the nut or disk in the tube isas follows: The tube is squeezed or creased externally near its end bypreliminary dies, so as to form an internal circumferential bead orshoulder, and while the tube is rigidly held by these preliminary dies anut or disk is shoved into the end of the tube against the internalshoulder and the end of the tube is bent inwardly or squeezed at theouter side of the nut or disk by final dies so that t-he nut or disk issecurely held between the internal shoulders or contracted portions ofthe tube. In the machine illustrated in the drawings, the mechanism forperforming this work is applied to and operated by an ordinaryclutch-controlled power press, the dies for creasing, indenting orsqueezing the tube, and the plunger for forcing the nuts into the tubebeing operated through suitable instrumentalities by the press ram orplunger, but these operations could be performed in like manner bymechanism differently constructed or actuated. The nuts or disks can befed to the operating mechanism by hand or automatically, the machineshown in the drawings being provided with feed mechanism for the nutscontrolled by the treadle by which the action of the press iscontrolled.

In the accompanying drawings, consisting of three sheets: Figure 1 is afragmentary transverse sectional elevation of a power press equippedwith mechanism embodying the invention for securing nuts or disks intubes. Fig. 2 is a fragmentary sectional plan view thereof, on anenlarged scale, in line 2-2, Fig. 1, showing a tube held by the primarydie and a nut or disk in place in the tube. Fig. 3 is a similar viewshowing the tube after the end thereof has been squeezed to secure thenut. Fig. 4 is a plan view, partly in horizontal section, of themechanism. Fig. 5 is a fragmentary elevation of one pair of the dieoperating levers and their actuating cams. Fig. 6 is a front elevation,partly in section, of the machine, in line 6 6, Fig. 4L. Fig. 7 is asectional plan view in line 7-7, Fig. 6. Fig. 8 is a fragmentarysectional elevation, on an enlarged scale, of thc feed chute for thenuts or disks and the associated parts.

Like reference characters refer to like parts in the several figures.

X, Fig. 3 represents a tube, such as used in tubular metal bedstcadframes, and a' is the nut Vor disk which is secured in the end of thetube by the machine embodying the invention of this application. The nutor disk is securely held in the tube between an internal bead w and theinturned edge m2 of the tube formed by squeezing the tube.

A represents the bed or base of an ordinary clutch-controlled powerpress, and l the vertically reciprocating rain or plunger thereof.

C represents a base block which is suitably secured in a seat in the bedof the press, and D is a die holder or block which is removably confinedin a vertical recess in the. base block C. This die block is providedwith a transverse opening into which the end of a tube is adapted to beinserted and with a longitudinal intersecting cavity (l in whichpreliminary and final dies E and E respectively are confined and aremovable horizontally to crease or squeeze the tube. llach of the dies l)and E (see Fig. G) consists of four wedge-shaped sections arranged inopposite pairs and having inclined edges which slide againstcorrespondingly inclined or converging faces at the top and bottom ofthe die cavity (Z in the die block D, so that by forcing the oppositepairs inwardly toward each other the die will be contracted about thetube in the tube opening of the die block. A

spring e arranged between the sections of each pair tends to spread thesame to expand the die. The inner ends of the die sections havesegmental ribs adapted, when the die is contractedabout the tube, toform a circumferential crease therein or squeeze the tube. Thepreliminary and final dies are substantially Valike and they could beemployed for forming circumferential creases in the tube at oppositesides of the nut or disk, but the nut or disk is usually secured in theend of the tube and the final die simply turns in or squeezes theextreme end of the tube at the outer side of the nut or disk.

The sectional dies are contracted to press the tube as follows: F and Frepresent plungers arranged to slide horizontally in guide ways f in thebase block C at opposite sides of the die block, each plunger bearing atits inner end against one pair of the sections of the preliminary die.Levers G G suitably fulcrumed at g on the base block C with their lowerends bearing against the outer ends of the plungers F F, are provided attheir upper ends with anti-friction rollers g arranged in the path ofcam faces H H on the press ram B. When the press ram descends the camfaces H H engage the lever rollers and spread the upper ends of thelevers, thus moving the lower ends inwardly and forcing the plungers F Ftoward each other to contact the sectional die E. The final die E issimilarly operated by plungers F 2 F3, levers G2 G3 and cam faces H2 H3yon the press ram. The relation between the die operating levers andtheir actuating cam faces is such that when the ram descends thepreliminary die will be actuated first, and the final die will not beoperated until after the nut or disk has been inserted in the tubeagainst the bead or shoulder m formed by the preliminary die. The leversG2 and G3 for the final die preferably consist of jointed sections withinterposed springs g3 (see Figs. 5 and 6) whereby the pressure on thetube is transmitted through these springs, which act as safety devicesto prevent injury to the machine in the event of a nut or disk beingimproperly placed in the tube, so that the final die engages the tubeopposite to the nut or disk and is thus prevented from contracting toits normal eX- tent. The cam faces H H2 and H H3 are formed on blocks 7iand t, respectively, which are adjustbly secured on the press ram forenabling the cam faces lto be adjusted as required to cause the properaction of the dies. As shown, the cam blocks Z1, L are secured on theram by clamp screws l1. and are adjusted by a right and left-handthreaded adjust-ing screw h3 arranged between them, the blocks beingguided by a bar h4 sliding in slots in the two blocks, see Fig. 6. Diessuch as described, `.could be operated by the press ram through othersuitable mechanism, or different means for creasing or squeezing thetube as described could be employed.

I represents an end gage against which u of the press and the die blockD with itsy upper end normally projecting into the tube opening of thedie block. The gage rod is connected below the bed of the press to anarm z' projecting from an upright rod z" which extends verticallythrough a hole in the bed of the press and is secured at its upper endto the press ram. The gage rod I preferably passes loosely through ahole in the arm Z and a spring 'Z2r is interposed between the arm z' anda collar on the gage rod, which permits the gage rod to be lowered toretract its upper end from the tube opening in the die blockindependently of the operation of the press. A, lever Z3, Fig. 1,pivoted to t-he lower end of the gage rod and adapted to be swungupwardly so as to bear against the flange of the Vpress bed, aHords aneasy means for thus lowering the gage rod I.

K represents a tube rest mounted on the press bed in front of the baseblock C and having a seat 7c in which the tube is held with its innerend in the die block against the end gage. The rest detachable to permitdifferent rests to be employed when operating on tubes of ydifferentdiameters. Any other suitable gage and rest, or means, for holding thetube in proper position for the operation of the dies could be'employed.

L represents a plunger for pushing the nut or disk into the end of thetube. This plunger is arranged to reciprocate horizontally into and outof the end of the tube which is held in the dies and is provided at itsfront end with a central stud adapted to enter the hole in the nut tohold the nut in position as it is moved into the tube by the plunger.The plunger' is detachably secured to a rod Z which slides fore and aftof the press in a bearing opening in a bracket Z secured on the pressbed, and is guided by a sleeve Z2 which is secured by a set screw Z3,Fig. 1, or other means, in an opening in the base block C in alinementwith the tube opening in the die block. v

Z4 is a lever pivoted on the bracket Z an connected at one end to theplunger rod and provided at its other end with a roller arranged inthepath of a cam Z5 secured to the press ram. When the press ramdescends the cam Z5 engaging the roller moves the upper end of the leverrearwardly and throws its lower end forwardly and 'advances the plungerL. Suitable springs Z6 connected to the lever and the bracket on whichit is fulcrumed serve to retract the plunger, when the press ramascends. Other suitable means for operating the plunger could beemployed. The plunger' normally stands with its stud in rear of avertical open-ended chute M through which the nuts can be dropped intothe plunger guide opening in front of the plunger. This chute is held ina vertical hole in the base block C and the upper side of the plungerguide sleeve Z2 is cut away beneath the chute to permit the nut or diskto drop into the plunger guide openino.

N, Figs. 2, 3, 7 and 8, represent yielding retaining fingers which arepivoted on'the plunger guide sleeve Z2 at opposite sides thereof and arenormally held so as to project transversely into the plunger guideopening, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, by suitable springs n. The nut ordisk is dropped into the plunger guide sleeve, which affords a seattherefor, between the end of the plunger and the retaining fingers, andwhen the plunger is advanced the fingers retain the nut or disk uprightuntil the stud is projected into the hole in the nut or disk, afterwhich the plunger pushes the nut forwardly between the fingers N, whichswing laterally to permit the passage of the nut or disk. The nuts ordisks can be dropped into position in front of the plunger by hand, ifdesired, but mechanism for automatically feeding the nuts to the`plunger is shown in the drawings, which is constructed as follows:

Q, Fig. 6, represents a vertical magazine tube for the nuts or disks,supported by a suitable bracket O secured to the press, and P is aninclined twisted chute leading from the magazine to the vertical chuteM. Thel nuts or disks are fed from the bottom of the stack in themagazine into the inclined chute one at a time by a lever Q pivotedbelow the magazine and provided with a spring-operated feed dog (l whichprojects into the lower end of the magazine through a slot in thesupporting bracket therefor. The feed lever' Q is connected by a rod Rto the treadle (not shown) by which the press is operated. Then thetreadle is depressed to start the press the feed lever-is swung to placethe feed dog q back of the bottom nut or disk in the magazine, and whenthe treadle is released the feed lever will be thrown forward to theposition shown in Fig. 6 and will move a nut or disk from the magazineinto the feed chute, through which it will slide into the seat in frontof the plunger L which inserts it into the tube.

The operation of the machine is as follows: Assuming the parts to be inthe position shown in Figs. 1, et and 6, with al nut or disk in positionin front of the inserting plunger L and a tube in place with its end inthe die block as shown in Fie. 7, the

` operative depresses the press treadle, which starts the press andcauses the rain B to descend in the usual manner. The preliminary die Eis first operated to squeeze or crease the tube by the engagement of thecams H H with the levers G G. lVhile the tube is held by the preliminarydie the cam Z5 operates the level' Z* and advances the plunger L to pushthe nut or disk into the tube against the internal bead or shoulderformed by the preliminary die, the gage rod F having been retracted fromin front of the plunger by the descent of the ram, as explained. Thecams H2 H then engage the levers Gr2 Gr and contract the final die so asto squeeze the end of the tube at the outer side of the nut or disk andseeure it in the tube. The depression of the treadle swings the feedlever Q to positionV to engage the bottom nut or disk in the magazine,and when the treadle is released and returned to its initial positionthe feed lever Q is swung to feed another nut or disk into position tobe inserted in the tube, in the manner explained. As in the ordinaryclutch-controlled press, the operation of the ram continues if thetreadle is held down, so that by holding the treadle down the operativecan, if desired, subject each tube to two or more pressures by the dies.As a new nut or disk is not fed to the inserting plunger until thetreadle is released, the continued operation of the ram and theinserting plunger does not, of course, interfere with the successivesqueezing operations of the dies.

To adapt the machine for operation on tubes of a different size fromthose upon which it has been operating, the dies E and E are removed andreplaced by others of proper size for the new tubes. rlhe tube rest K,plunger L and its guide sleeve Z2 and the chute M are also replaced bycorresponding parts of the proper size to insure the proper alinement ofthe tube and nut or disk and position of the former relative to thedies.

lVe claim as our invention:

1. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combination ofmeans for forniing an internal shoulder in the tube, means for insertingthe nut or disk into the tube aginst said shoulder, means for bendinginwardly the tube at the outer side of the nut or disk for securing thenut or disk against said internal shoulder, and mechanism for operatingsaid means in succession in the order mentioned, substantially as setforth.

2. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combination ofmeans for creasing the tube to form therein an internal circumferentialshoulder, means for inserting the nut or disk in the tube against saidshoulder, means for turning in the end of the tube at the outer side ofthe nut or disk,

and mechanism for operating said means in succession in the ordermentioned, substantially as set forth.

3.` In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combination ofa preliminary die for squeezing the tube to form therein an internalshoulder, means for inserting the nut or disk into the tube against saidshoulder, a final die for squeezing the tube at the outer side of thenut `or disk, and mechanism for operating said dies and means insuccession in the order mentioned, substantially as set forth.

4. In a machine for securing nuts or disksV in tubes, the combination ofa preliminary contractible die for squeezing the tube to form therein aninternal shoulder, means for inserting the nut or disk into the tube, afinal contractible die for squeezing the tube at the outer side of thenut `or disk, and mechanism Which operates first to contract thepreliminary die to squeeze and hold the tube, then to actuate the meansfor inserting the nut or disk, and then to contract the final die on thetube, substantially as set forth.

5. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combinationwith a press having a reciprocating ram, of a\ preliminary die forsqueezing the tube to form therein an internal shoulder, means forinserting` the nut or disk into the tube against said shoulder, a finaldie for squeezing the tube at the outer side of the nut or disk, andmechanism actuated by the press ram for operating said dies and means insuccession in the order mentioned, substantially as set forth.

6. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combination ofa rest for holding the tube, a preliminary die for squeezing the tube toform therein an internal shoulder, a plunger for pushing the nut or diskinto the tube against said shoulder, a final die for squeezing the tube,at the outer side of the nut or disk, and mechanism for operating saiddies and plunger in succession in the order mentioned, substantially asset forth.

7. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combination ofa rest for the tube, an end gage for the tube, a preliminary die forsqueezing the tube to form therein an internal shoulder, a plunger forpushing the nut or disk into the tube, a final die for squeezing' thetube at the outer side of the nut or disk, and vmechanism for operatingsaid dies and plunger and retracting said end gage, substantially as setforth.

8. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combination ofa rest for the tube, a preliminary die for squeezing the tube to formtherein an internal shoulder, a

` plunger for pushing the nut or disk into the tube, yielding devicesfor retaining the nut or disk in position in front of said plunger', afinal die for squeezing the tube at the outer side of the nut or disk,and y mechanism Vfor operating said dies and plunger, substantially asset forth.

9. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combinationWith a press having a reciprocatingram, of a preliminary die forsqueezing the tube to form therein an internal shoulder, means forinserting the nut or disk into the tube, a final die for squeezing thetube at the outer side of the nut or disk, operating levers for saiddies and nut inserting means, and cams on the press ram arranged toengage and actuate said levers to first operate'the preliminary die,then insert the nut or disk in the tube and then operate the final die,substantially as set forth. Y

10. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combination ofa preliminary die forsqueezing the tube to form therein an internalshoulder, means for inserting the nut or disk into the tube, a. finaldie for squeezing the tube at the outer side of the nut or disk,mechanism for operating said dies and means, and mechanism vfor feedingthe nuts or disks'to the inserting means, substantially as set forth.

11. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combination ofdies arranged side by side lengthwise of the' tube, means for insertingthe nut or disk in the tube, and means for operating said dies t0squeeze the tube at opposite sides of the nut or disk to form internalraised portions on the tubes to secure the nut or disk in the tube,substantially as set forth.

l2. In a machine for securing nuts or disks in tubes, the combination ofa rest for the tube, means forV supporting a nut or disk opposite to theend of the tube, means for feeding a nut or disk to said nut-supportingmeans, preliminary and final dies between Which the tube is held andWhich are movable toward the tube, and connected mechanism for operatingsaid feeding means, actuating said preliminary die to form an internalshoulder in the tube, then actuating said plunger to insert a nut -ordisk into the tube against said internal shoulder, and then actuatingsaid final die for contracting the tube at the outer side of the nut ordisk, substantially as setforth.

Vitness our hands, this 13th day of May, 1909. Y

CHARLES VALLONE. FRANK R. ROGERS. Witnesses A. W. Km'roN, C. L.I'IYsLor.

